A Thief's Duty on Holiday
by Balin Lord of Moria
Summary: The Thieves' Guild sets about teaching the people of Spielburg how to enjoy Christmas without material presents. Rated K plus for an act of crime.


**A/N: **This probably isn't one of my better stories, and I don't expect everyone to agree with its message, but I wanted to write at least one Christmas story this year, and this sounded like an interesting idea. So if you enjoy, good, and if you don't, please don't flame!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Quest for Glory_; Sierra created and owns it.

* * *

"All right, Hickory," said the Chief of the Thieves' Guild in Spielburg, to the heroic thief, "Ordinarily, I give the Guild's members no special assignments on their nightly robberies of houses, but tonight, on Christmas Eve, I want you to do something important for me, something that the citizens of Spielburg must learn for themselves."

"Of course, Chief," said Hickory, ready for whatever he was commanded to do.

"Some of the others thieves will be helping you with this," the Chief said, "I want you to go to one of the houses in Spielburg at night and steal away all their Christmas presents, and bring them back to the Guild. You will receive your usual reward if you succeed without raising an alarm."

"Yes, Chief," said Hickory, "But tell me please, Mr. Zeke, what is the point of this task? Why steal Christmas gifts from the people, especially on Christmas Eve?"

"Because I want to put the people of Spielburg to the test," said Zeke. "Christmas is about more than just gifts, and I wish to see if the fair people of the town can celebrate Christmas for what it is: the celebration of love, peace, and baby Jesus. It always has been the point of the thief heroes of the lands to teach people how to get along without their material possessions, and Christmas is a very important time to learn that if you don't already know it."

"I understand, Mr. Zeke," said Hickory, "I'll get right on it tonight. Which house do you want me to raid?"

Zeke told him which one, and late that night, Hickory got to work. At the right house, he used his thin, sharp instruments to pick and open the lock, and he entered. His eyes were accustomed to the dim light, so he could see seven Christmas gifts under the Christmas tree. He took out a cloth bag for putting the gifts in, and stealthily walked over to the tree, snatching up each gift and putting it in the bag. Leaving no traces of his being there, he quietly stole away and locked the front door again after he got back outside.

Back at the Guild, Hickory fenced the stolen gifts, and the Chief put them away. The next morning, Hickory and some of the other thieves were ordered to go outside and observe how the people of Spielburg Town were taking the loss of their gifts.

To Hickory's surprise and astonishment, as well as that of most of his fellow thieves who walked discreetly through the crowd of celebrating people, almost all those who had lost their gifts were taking it very well. They were singing Christmas carols and expressing love and peace on earth to each other. Only one household seemed to be taking the loss of their gifts pretty hard. Hickory could only assume that they were a little more attached to their presents than the others were.

It was then that Hickory realized that more people than not were willing to celebrate Christmas for what it truly was, and not just for giving and getting. Christmas was a time for non-material happiness above all else, and the people didn't necessarily need their gifts to express that.

It looked like the Chief would be satisfied when he found out, unless he already knew. Privately, he hoped that the Chief would allow them to secretly return the stolen gifts, but even if that didn't happen, it was evident from today's experience that the thief was just as much a hero in the fantastical lands around the world as anyone else who fought for good things, if not as celebrated as more virtuous heroes like the fighter and the magic user. And one day, Hickory hoped to find a way to have himself openly declared a hero and not just an adventurer.

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!**


End file.
